of warmth
by katyfaise
Summary: It's takes more than just blankets to warm up a drenched Eponine. Modern AU. One shot.


I'm not really sure what this is. I just wanted to write something in a modern AU where Enjolras and Eponine weren't in a real relationship, but were bordering on one. I might continue in this universe with other fics, but I'm not completely sure. For the mean time, I hope everyone enjoys this. It's a bit all over the place, and I apologize. Also, feel free to follow me on tumblr ( .com) so you can see me fangirling about almost everything... a lot of Les Mis and Enjonine, specifically.

* * *

The events leading up to the present were simple – Eponine had fallen into the river downtown and he had jumped to action (like he always did).

Truthfully, the words 'I told you so' hung on his breath but he'd stayed quiet. The poor girl was going through enough though. But Enjolras _had_ told her to stay away from the edge since the rain in the past few days would do nothing but make mud. Mud was slippery and the chances of her falling were strong. Eponine could never be stopped by warnings, not when she set her mind toward something she was determined to finish – though why she was determined to walk along the length of the riverbank, Enjolras was unsure. The sun was setting deeper into the horizon and he'd been struggling to read the tiny words in the novel so his attention was regrettably off of the brunette but by the time he'd noticed her humming had ceased, Eponine was already neck up in the water and soaked through to the bone.

His actions were not nearly quick enough to keep her from panicking, which made the whole ordeal worse than it already was. Thankfully, getting Eponine out of the river wasn't too complicated since even soaking wet she felt like nothing more than a feather in his grasp. With no time to waste, he wrapped his coat around her shoulders and hurriedly returned to his flat with a shivering Eponine by his side. Although Enjolras tried his best to warm her up, after an hour passed with no success he'd relented and called Joly… just to make Eponine feel better (since it wasn't _he_ who was worried or scared or anything of the sorts). By the time his friend had arrived, the heat in the apartment was far too high for Enjolras's liking and every blanket he owned was wrapped around Eponine's small frame even if she claimed it was all unneeded.

"If you'd quit shivering, I'd quit finding blankets."

Of course, Eponine _would_ think it was no big deal – things that happened to her were usually deemed unimportant by her standards. Enjolras wasn't sure if she had a large bleeding heart or just didn't like people fawning over her, though he could guess it was the latter.

"What happened?" Joly questioned, carefully moving to Eponine's side. Once Enjolras explained the incident at the river, he excused himself from the room so Joly could be alone with the patient. Plus, heating up a can of soup seemed like the relevant next step in his course of action. From the kitchen, he could distinctly hear Eponine explaining how she was completely fine – just a bit cold; it was nothing that a night of rest couldn't take care of.

When she sneezed Enjolras bit his lip to keep from laughing at the resounding, "No. No. No. No."

He returned to the living room, the hot bowl of soup in his hands and was greeted by Joly carefully rubbing hand sanitizer nearly to his elbows.

"I sneezed on him," Eponine explained, hungrily taking the bowl from Enjolras's grasp. For a moment she held it close to her face, taking in the warmth, but then dug in, hunger getting the best of her.

"She'll be fine. No fever, nothing broke… not even a bruise," Joly explained, staring at the bottle of sanitizer and contemplating adding more to his hands.

"Told you so." Enjolras glanced back at the brunette, a frown on his stone features. "Well I told you not to walk so close to the river." Before he could catch the girl rolling her eyes, he turned back to Joly who was wrapping his scarf around his neck. With the explanation that he needed to get back before it got _too_ cold, Joly took his leave, closing the door behind him with a heavy thud. Enjolras turned back to his guest, finding that she'd abandoned her bowl of soup for the blankets and was rolled up tightly.

"You sure you don't want my bed?"

Eponine didn't exactly make it a habit to stay at Enjolras's flat, no matter what comfortable habits they had slipped into in their relationship (which was barely existent), but it didn't bother him. If he turned her out or allowed her to leave after she'd fallen into the river then he wouldn't be able to live with himself. Besides, it wasn't like he wouldn't offer his bed to any one else who was unfortunate. Enjolras believed in helping the downtrodden and right now, the closest he had to that was Eponine.

She denied the bed, of course.

"The couch is fine. And I'm warm here. I don't want to ruin it."

He couldn't argue with her, because he would ultimately lose anyway, so instead he retreated to his bedroom. Enjolras left the door slightly ajar so he could hear if she needed him in the middle of the night but as soon as he'd changed into a pair of pajama pants, he could feel his body getting heavier; loaded down with exhaustion. The mere moment his body relaxed underneath the blankets, Enjolras was deeply asleep, with no plans on waking in the foreseeable future.

* * *

The slight ray of the rising sun shone over Eponine's eyes and they fluttered open, her body instantly recognizing the aches from sleeping on the couch. There was a spring loose and even through the numerous blankets she'd wrapped herself in, it had stuck into her back uncomfortably the whole night. She sat up, fingers running through her hair that was a bit matted and tangled.

"Dammit," she groaned, stretching slightly. She needed a shower to rid herself of the final remnants of the filthy river she'd been in, but for the moment all she wanted to do was feel the comfortable warmth sleep had offered her. With a blanket still wrapped around her shoulders, Eponine stood up and wandered into the kitchen, her eyes glancing by the ticking clock above the fridge.

5:43 AM.

As quietly as she could manage, she went about making coffee. She just wanted another source of warmth that could fill her from the inside out. While the water dripped into the pot, Eponine decided it might help her situation if the heat was turned up just a bit more. As she passed by Enjolras's room, she couldn't help but pause, his sleeping form drawing her eyes to the crack in the door. Lightly, she pushed the door away, a smile on her lips now. He really did go out of his way to help, not only her, but also everyone. Never had Eponine seen Enjolras turn away someone who truly needed assistance and there was a time she thought him naïve. Instead he had a good heart – the heart of a leader.

And all she could do was deny him the simple satisfaction of letting him sleep on the couch for her benefit.

Eponine sighed, her fingers grasping the doorknob to pull it closed. In a slight change of heart, she instead slipped into the room. With movements as light as a feather, she climbed into the bed beside his sleeping form and closed in the distance between them. The reluctance was strong, but Eponine snaked an arm around Enjolras's waist. His steady breathing ceased and Eponine immediately regretted her actions.

The man yawned and his hand came to brush against her arm. He stopped, seemingly surprised at the touch. Suddenly, he turned his head, eyes wide when he saw Eponine.

"What…"

"I'm sorry," she quickly apologized, making a move to pull her hand away, which Enjolras stopped. "There was a spring in the couch that woke me up." Eponine looked everywhere but his eyes, feeling a bit ashamed she'd been caught in the act of cozying up against him. Thankfully she saw the shadow of a sleepy smile grace his lips and the tension drained from her body.

"It's alright," he explained, turning his body so Eponine could be pulled closer to his chest. The thought of getting away from him as quickly as she could manage flashed in her mind, but instead she curled close, more than willing to steal his body heat. Time seemed to pass slowly from that point and the only thing keeping her grounded to reality was the occasional beeping from the coffee maker. This was perfect… or as close to perfect as the universe would allow someone like her.

"How do you feel?"

Enjolras's voice shook Eponine from her daydreaming and she turned her head up, her eyes on his features. She sighed, feeling content in the moment. How did she feel? There were many words in her mind to describe the feelings running through her body but after a moment she decided on a simple description.

"Warm."


End file.
